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PM Canto: It is December 3rd! you are in Boston, hanging out in the library of the Council Chapterhouse. You are accompanied by Anya, a woman that Theo passed you off to while he went to deal with some stuff. PM Hank: Hank is waiting. PM Josie: Josie rather likes her. PM Josie: Josie is lost in the books, though. PM Nilani: Nilani is browsing randomly, picking out whatever looks interesting, and is written in a language she can understand. Mainly bestiaries and other compendiums of things to watch out for. PM Canto: There are many bestiaries! There's one for cthonian demons, but that's not really a 101 book. PM Canto: That one has a lock on it. PM Canto: You might want to start with one of the ones about carnivorous fauna after the Tugunska blast. PM Canto: Anya: Not a reader, Mr. Stevenson? PM Hank: Not usually, ma'am. PM Nilani: Nilani stops grabbing new books once she has three, and sits down somewhere to read. PM Canto: Anya: So what do you like, then? What's your area? PM Hank: I'm a mechanic, ma'am. PM Canto: Anya: Ahhhh. I am a bit useless when it comes to technology myself. PM | Edited 9:15:00 PM Hank: Hank shrugs. "'s not for everyone. Most people don't know the difference between centrifugal and positive displacement. Guess most people don't care either." PM Canto: Anya: Yes. I definitely do not care. PM Josie: Josie has thoroughly forgotten where she is, and sits down, books in one arm, on the ground, to read another book. PM Hank: Hank smirks a little. PM Canto: Anya calls over to Josie. "... there are chairs, Dr. Black." PM Josie: Josie looks at her, and blinks. PM Josie: What? PM Hank: Chairs, Doc. PM Josie: What about them? PM Canto: Anya: you can sit in a chair. I understand that people like to sit in chairs rather than the floor. PM Josie: Josie blinks, and then turns red. PM Josie: ... oh. Oh right. PM Josie: Josie hops up and goes over to a chair and resumes reading, still blushing furiously. PM Canto: Anya leans against the counter as Theo walks in with a fresh, non-bloodied shirt. PM Nilani: ...that is definitely a banana. What's a banana doing in this book? PM Canto: Theo looks around. He looks a bit annoyed. PM Canto: Anya: .. how did the meeting go? PM Nilani: Nilani turns the page and jumps back, startled. PM Canto: Theo: Fortunada wants to have *another* formal. PM Nilani: A banana with TEETH. PM Canto: Theo: Every time he gets a new damn suit. PM Nilani: Also, this is apparently a pop-up book. PM Josie: Josie is *reading.* PM Canto: Anya chuckles. "He is a... clothes horse. That is the phrase, right?" PM Canto: Theo: Yeah. Everything going okay here? PM Canto: Anya: Dr. Black and Miss Bure are reading. I'm afraid Mr. Stevenson is a bit bored. PM Nilani: I may have developed a banana phobia. PM Hank: It takes a long time for me to be bored, ma'am. PM Canto: Theo: Well. Prepare to withstand the massive boredom of a vampire party. PM Josie: .... vampire party? PM Canto: Theo: Yeah. Frederich Fortunada is the chief administrator of this chapterhouse. And he loves formal parties. PM Hank: Hank sighs. PM Josie: Josie brightens. PM Josie: Oh good, I was hoping I hadn't brought clothes for nothing. PM Canto: Theo: Definitely not. PM Canto: Theo: I guarantee that there will be at least three while you're here. PM Canto: Theo: But it'll be a good chance to introduce you guys around. PM Hank: ....three? PM Canto: Theo: Very possibly. PM Canto: Theo: Stevenson. You wanted to see us open up the Ghost Engine, right? PM Hank: Yes, sir. PM Canto: Theo: That's where I'm headed now. You're welcome to come along. All of you are. PM Hank: Hank nods. PM Nilani: Nilani shuts her book and gets up. PM Josie: Josie does too. PM Josie: All right. PM Nilani: It's a welcome change from pop-up books with murderous fruit. PM Josie: ... murderous fruit? PM Canto: Theo nods. PM Nilani: And vegetables! PM Canto: Theo: C'mon, then. PM Josie: Josie does. PM Josie: I picked up one of your books, Dr. Crafter. PM Canto: Theo: Which one? PM Josie: "Elementary Principles of Thaumaturgy for Beginners." PM Canto: Theo: Hmm. Not a lot of fans of that one. PM Josie: "Elementary" seemed a good idea. PM Canto: Theo: I was accused by the Order of Hermetic Mages of trying to corrupt the young. PM Josie: ... well now I *really* want to read it. PM Canto: Theo: You sure? I might be a bad influence. PM Josie: Of course. PM Canto: You guys go to a large room that seems like a combination of a laboratory and a machine shop. PM Josie: Josie smiles. PM Hank: Hank looks around with a bit of a smile. PM Nilani: Nilani curiously glances around. PM Canto: Theo takes off his jacket and hangs it on a coat rack. At the center of the lab, the ghost engine has been set up. PM Hank: Hank looks on with interest. PM Canto: Theo: All right. We've never seen one this small before. Anya, reinforce the wards, would you? PM Canto: Anya nods and goes around the room to certain spots on the wall. Her hand glows as she touches the wall, and an arcane glyph appears for a moment before fading again. PM Canto: Theo hands each of you some blackened goggles! PM Hank: Hank puts them on! PM Josie: Josie does too. PM Nilani: Nilani puts her pair on and grins toothily. PM Josie: Does its size indicate a master's work, or is there some other significance? PM Canto: Theo: Possibly. I've never seen one with this cylindrical shape, either. And the metal... have no idea what metal this is. PM Hank: How do they work? PM Canto: Theo: A necromancer captures a bunch of souls. Puts them in a container. PM Canto: He indicates the box. PM Canto: Theo: These tubes direct the souls to the main mechanism. PM Canto: He points to the cylinder. PM Canto: Theo: The energy generated is harnessed by the magic bound into the engine and used as fuel. PM Canto: Theo: It's the process of the souls moving through the tubes that creates the energy. Once they reach the cylinder, they're sucked back into the box where the process starts again. PM Canto: Theo: It would be a very clever and revolutionary source of energy if it weren't for all the atrocities. PM Hank: So it's like a natural circulation system. Interesting. PM Josie: And the keeping-someone-inside-a-tiny-engine. PM Hank: That explains why there were no moving parts. PM Canto: Theo nods. "All the movement is strictly non-corporeal." PM Hank: So what's the cylinder actually *do*? PM Canto: Theo: No idea. I'll have a better idea when I open it up. PM Canto: Anya walks over with a case, and sets it on the table beside Theo. He opens it up and pulls out a set of gauntlets. They look heavy and armored, and are studded with capacitors and wires and other such technology. PM Canto: He gestures, and the tip of his forefinger sparks with a bright light, which he traces over the surface of the cylinder, bisecting it! PM Hank: Hank raises an eyebrow behind his goggles. PM Canto: It takes a couple minutes, but soon there's a white hot line bisecting the cylinder. Theo looks to Anya, who has been watching, and has no goggles. "Anya, if you please. PM Josie: ... shouldn't she be wearing goggles too? PM Canto: She walks up to it, and her own hands become green and scaly, her fingernails turning into long talons that she squeezes into the new, still white-hot seam. She strains only a little, pulling the cylinder into two halves. PM Canto: Theo: She doesn't need 'em. PM Hank: Hank looks uncomfortable again. PM Josie: Oh, I see, she has a spell. PM Canto: Anya makes a face as she pulls the cylinder apart. "Augh, the smell..." PM Canto: Theo: No, Anya's a dragon. PM Hank: ...dragon. PM Josie: Literally? PM Canto: Anya rubs her hands and they become human again. "Zmeya." PM Canto: Theo: Which is russian for 'dragon'. PM Canto: Anya: Not really. PM Canto: Theo: Close enough. PM *** Group call *** PM Josie: ... is it *very* confusing? PM Canto: ((That was me.)) PM Canto: Anya: Is what? PM Josie: Having multiple heads. ... that may be a personal question, I'm afraid. Sorry. PM Canto: Anya: Oh, no. Three heads, but one mind. PM Josie: Thank goodness! PM | Edited 10:22:10 PM Hank: Hank eyes Anya. PM Canto: Anya steps away from the cylinder. You can all smell it.... a foul, organic stench. "Prometheus... this is not normal." PM Canto: Inside the cylinder is a mass of.... organs. PM Canto: Red and blue and green. All kind of slimy. Nothing any of you can really recognize as human organs from where you're standing. PM Josie: ... ugh. What *is* that? PM Nilani: Bleah. PM Nilani: Nilani covers her nose. PM Canto: Theo: ... definitely not the normal contents of a ghost engine. Biotechnology. PM Hank: Hank makes a face. :/ PM Hank: Any idea who's responsible? PM Josie: Josie looks away. PM Canto: Theo: Not a clue. There's not a lot of groups working with arcane biotech. And no one is close to this level. PM Canto: Theo: Well. Obviously *someone* is. Just no one I know of. PM Canto: Anya: Yes, well. I have a much more acute sense of smell. I am going to go vomit, I believe. PM Hank: Can you tell what it was used for? PM Canto: She excuses herself. PM Josie: ... poor woman. Ugh, it's bad enough as it is. PM Canto: Theo: I haven't a clue. This is really, really, not my field. PM Josie: Whose is it, then? PM Canto: Theo thinks. "The only people working with this sort of thing are vampires. They've been working in arcane biotechnology to create a kind of synthetic blood. They haven't been wildly successful yet, but they're working on it." PM Canto: Theo: They might know. I'll do some asking around. PM Josie: I wonder if it has anything to do with Miss Burke's friend. PM Canto: Theo raises an eyebrow. PM Hank: How many of 'em are there? PM Canto: Theo: How many of what? PM Hank: Vampires. PM Canto: Theo: Quite a few. They organize themselves culturally into familes and sub-families. PM Nilani: "Friend". Yeah, sure. PM Nilani: *mumblegrumble* stupid limiter. PM Nilani: Nilani grumps. PM Canto: Theo raises an eyebrow. "Am I missing something here?" PM Hank: She was approached by one before Mr. Hughes. PM Canto: Theo: Oh? PM Josie: Josie nods. PM Nilani: Nilani continues grumping. PM Josie: We were all approached. PM Canto: Theo: Who approached you? PM Josie: The Order of St. George. PM Canto: Theo makes a face. PM Canto: Theo looks at Hank. "How about you?" PM Hank: Leviathan, sir. PM Josie: I was interested until I found dout they'd lost papal sanction. PM Josie: They gave him a leg. PM Canto: Theo: A leg? PM Hank: Yessir. Lost mine in China. They... replaced it. PM Canto: Theo: Hmm. PM Canto: Theo looks back at Ella. "So, a vampire came along and offered you eternal life, I assume? " PM Nilani: Eternal life, fame, fortune, power, and a kitten. PM Nilani: Actually no kitten. PM Josie: Mine wanted to make me a nun. PM Nilani: But the rest of it, yeah. PM Canto: Theo: Let me guess.. Then they hypnotized you so you couldn't really talk about it yourself. PM Canto: Theo raises an eyebrow at Josie. "Did you want to be a nun?" PM Josie: Josie shrugs. PM Josie: I'd considered it as a girl. PM Nilani: "That is correct!" Ella bellows in a newscaster-y voice. "Get this man a stuffed elephant!" PM Canto: Theo: The Georges... you know those stories about eastern european townsfolk running wise men, mad scientists and cunning women out of town with torches and pitchforks? They say that almost all of those mobs had a George at the center of it. PM Josie: Well, they're not sanctioned by the pope anyway. PM Canto: Theo: They haven't for awhile. PM Canto: Theo: Well. I'm going to get this thing on ice. I suggest you go to your hotel and get ready for the party tonight. PM Josie: It's *tonight*? PM Josie: ... does he usually give such little notice? What if you're working? PM Canto: Theo: He's the boss. Me going *will* be me working as far as he's concerned. PM Josie: ... but surely there are other things that take precedence. PM Canto: Theo shrugs. "Probably. But I'm actually kind of glad we'll have so many people who might know about this thing under one roof." PM Hank: How formal are we talking? PM Canto: Theo: Formal. Suits and all. Probably dancing. PM Josie: I like dancing. Do you dance, Mr. Crafter? PM Canto: Theo: I can. Had dancing lessons since I was little. My parents were very big on that sort of thing. PM Josie: What about your Russian friend? PM Canto: Theo: Anya? She doesn't see the point of it if she can't fly. PM Josie: Hmm. That's a shame. ... we'd better get going, it's going to take me a while to get ready. PM Canto: Theo tosses Josie some keys. "You can just use the care you drove here." PM Hank: ...where's this hotel at? PM Josie: Josie catches them. PM Canto: Theo: Just head east down the street. The Sunset. PM Hank: Shall we, then? PM Josie: Josie heads out! She drives. Of course. PM Hank: Hank is designated doorman. PM Canto: You go to a very nice hotel! Your luggage has already been brought to your rooms! PM Hank: Hank shaves, dresses quickly, and heads downstairs looking for a bar. PM Josie: Josie gets readyThis is gonna take a while. PM Canto: There is a bar! PM Hank: Hank will sit and have a drink while he waits for the ladies! PM Nilani: Nilani essentially just tosses on a formal-looking dress and comfy shoes, then de-frizzes her unruly mane a bit and heads to wherever we're meeting up. PM Josie: Josie *eventually* gets done. PM Josie: Josie will look freaking fantastic, too! Red dress in the latest style! Perfectly curled hair! Awesome heels! PM Canto: You can all meet in the bar! PM Canto: You all look great. You all get stares. PM Hank: Hank is sitting at the bar, nursing another bourbon. PM Josie: All right. Let's go. PM Hank: Hank finishes his drink. "You two look very handsome." PM Josie: I was going for "knockout." PM Josie: Josie adjusts the red flower in her hair. PM | Edited 11:27:09 PM Hank: Hank looks at her. "Didn't miss. I'm just aiming for 'not embarrassing,' myself." PM Josie: You're devastatingly handsome, Mr. Stevenson. PM Hank: Hank turns red. PM Hank: Not that I'm looking forward to this, but we should probably get going. PM Josie: I'll drive. PM Josie: Josie holds up her little red purse and takes out the keys. PM Hank: ...can you in those shoes? PM Josie: I can *dance* in these shoes. PM Hank: Hank escorts them to the car and holds the doors open for them! PM Canto: So! You guys head back to the chapterhouse and drive through the wall again! PM Josie: Josie vroom!! PM Canto: You meet with Theo, who's cleaned up, wearing a tux, and has his arms crossed. He looks uncomfortable. PM Josie: Something wrong? PM Canto: He blinks at Josie. "Oh. Um. No. Just don't like this suit. Slightly uncomfortable." PM Josie: Well, it looks nice. PM Hank: You and me both, Dr. Crafter. PM Canto: Canto blushes a bit at Josie. "Um. Thanks." PM Josie: We all look amazing. ... now, where do we go. PM Canto: Theo: C'mon. This way. PM Hank: Hank follows. PM Nilani: Nilani also follows. PM Canto: You go up an elevator to the very roof of the building! You're outside. But it's not freezing.... it's actually very warm and cozy! There's no snow, and there's magical lights hanging everywhere. PM Canto: I think we're gonna stop here for tonight.